Team Eglin tweets to inform, engage

  • Published
  • By Ashley M. Wright
  • Team Eglin Public Affairs
Team Eglin entered the social media realm March 3 by establishing an Eglin AFB Twitter account (www.twitter.com/teameglin) designed to keep the base population and surrounding communities informed with the latest information about the base.

"Social media provides the base with an additional resource to reach our Airmen and our neighbors outside the gate with critical, timely information," said Col. Bruce McClintock, 96th Air Base Wing commander.

The goal of the Team Eglin account will be to provide instantaneous, two-way communication with the public regarding critical information, updates and messages.
Possible examples include sending out safety reminders during hurricane conditions, announcing a road closure or linking to an article. The 96th Air Base Wing Public Affairs office will monitor and manage the account.

Twitter is a social networking site providing real time "tweets" to followers. Tweets consist of no more than 140 characters and may contain links to articles or photos.

The site increased from two to 20 million visitors last year, according to a recent article in "PC Advisor." Currently, 11 percent of all time spent online in the U.S. is spent on a social networking site.

The first official Department of Defense policy on new media was released at the end last week. Directive Type Memorandum 09-026, effective immediately, states the DoD non-classified network (the NIPRNET) is for open access so all of DoD can use new media.

"This memorandum establishes DoD policy and assigns responsibilities for responsible and effective use of Internet-based capabilities, including social networking services. This policy recognizes that Internet-based capabilities are integral to operations across the Department of Defense," said Deputy Defense Secretary William J. Lynn III in the memo he signed.

Commanders at all levels and heads of DOD components will continue to defend against malicious activity on military information networks, deny access to prohibited content sites such as gambling, pornography and hate-crime related activities and take immediate and commensurate actions, as required, to safeguard missions, the memo reads.

The Team Eglin account can be found at www.twitter.com/teameglin. To receive tweets to a personal account, click the "follow" button. In addition, an individual can choose to have base updates sent to mobile devices such as a cellular phone by following instructions on the Twitter Web site.